The present invention relates generally to roulette gaming apparatus and more particularly to a system that automatically determines which compartment of a roulette wheel finally receives the roulette ball and displays the results to players via a lighted table upon which the stakes are placed.
Roulette, a popular game of chance, is played against a "banker" using a roulette wheel rotatably held within a structure called a bowl. The roulette wheel carries a plurality of numbered, red and black compartments that are formed on an upward facing surface that borders the periphery of the wheel. The roulette wheel, and bowl in which the wheel is mounted, sits on a table portion of the upper surface of which is typically marked to delineate spaces that are colored and numbered to correspond with the compartments of the wheel.
Wagers are made by the players by placing the stakes upon the marked spaces of the roulette table. Each game is initiated when, after the wagers are placed, the croupier (i.e., the person in charge of operating the game on behalf of the banker) spins the roulette wheel and sets a ball in motion in a race formed in the bowl in an opposite direction from the wheel's spin. Ultimately, the ball will drop into one of the compartments, defining the winning wagers by the number associated with the ball-receiving compartment, whether the number is odd or even, the color of the compartment, and like combinations of compartment indicia.
The game of roulette has been played in this manner, using essentially the same equipment as described, for centuries. The game, as described, is not without certain problems, however. For example, some unscrupulous players, in an effort to tip the odds in their favor, will surreptitiously place a small sponge or other material in one or more of the compartments of the roulette wheel in order to obviate the chance that the ball will be received by the altered compartment or compartments. Placement of the material in any compartment is easily accomplished by skilled persons without the croupier's knowledge, when his attention is, for example, focused upon paying off the winning wagers; and some of the materials used are so ingenious that they cannot be discovered without a thorough inspection of the wheel.
Another form of advantage taken by perfidious players, usually referred to as "post-play betting," again relies upon the croupier's focus of attention upon the wheel during the crucial moments of game play. In order to determine which compartment of the roulette wheel the ball drops into, and at the instant the ball finally comes to rest, the croupier's attention is on the wheel. At this moment in time a player will quickly switch his wager by moving the stake from one table space to a winning space.
Yet another problem encountered is croupier error. When the ball finally falls into a compartment, the croupier must quickly calculate all winning combinations and determine winning wagers such as, for example, the number and color of the compartment, whether the winning number is odd, even, in the first, second or third set of all available compartments numbers, etc. In short, there are times when a croupier erroneously pays on a non-winning wager.
Thus, there is needed apparatus which can detect which compartment of the roulette wheel the ball finally decides to drop into, allowing the croupier to focus his attention on the betting surface of the table. The apparatus should provide the croupier with indicia of the compartment in which the ball rests which requiring the croupier's eyes to leave the betting surface. Finally, the apparatus should also be able to detect foreign matter placed in any of the compartments.